


Resilience

by ohmyfae



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: BDSM AU, Dom/sub, Flogging, M/M, Sex, With a side dash of Cor and Loqi, everyone lives au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-14
Updated: 2018-09-14
Packaged: 2019-07-12 09:29:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15992426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohmyfae/pseuds/ohmyfae
Summary: A BDSM AU fic for the kinkmeme: Five times Noctis resists, one time he doesn't. Ardyn has a remarkable way of wearing Noctis' defenses down.





	Resilience

**Author's Note:**

> There's a sliiiiight hint of Luna and Noctis having a sort of possible thing in the background, and yes, I would 100% consider exploring this more with a threesome if I have the time or wake up at two am and think, "Well, I'm awake now, I guess I ought to."
> 
> Set in an AU where peace talks are actually possible!

It started with shards of glass on the polished tiles of the Citadel roof. They glittered in the light of brilliant gold fireworks, and champagne spilled in a shallow pool at Ardyn Izunia's feet.

"Ah," he said. Noctis Lucis Caelum, dressed in a fine black suit with an unfortunate motif of skulls embroidered at the collar, stood with his arms crossed, hands tucked firmly in place while he met Ardyn's gaze. It was a direct stare, a commanding stare, the sort of look that would have a sub in Gralea dragged by the hair or sent out in disgrace, untouched and pleading.

"Excuse me," Ardyn said. "My hand must have slipped."

It hadn't, of course. It was a simple test, a few murmured words of command-- _hold this for me, would you?--_ and a deliberate look, but Noctis had simply stepped back, letting the glass fall from Ardyn's fingers. 

"Clumsy of you," Noctis said. Ardyn smiled.

"Yes, I suppose it was."

Noct regarded Ardyn a moment longer, then turned from him, walking smoothly across the roof to where Lady Lunafreya stood with her entourage. She reached out to him, and Noct bowed over her hand, clutching it just a fraction too tight for comfort. She smiled and glanced over at Ardyn, then stepped down from the dais. Ardyn watched them whirl across the dance floor, Luna's hand on Noctis' shoulder, and smiled at the way he leaned into her touch. An heir to the throne could not be seen as anything but unwavering, detached from his baser instincts, and Noctis would have to find subtler ways to yield, holding the bulk of his nature at bay.

Ardyn brushed the shards of his champagne glass aside with his foot and turned on his heel, whistling softly.

\---

"On your knees."

Ardyn knew that his own disposition was easy to forget. Enough newcomers to the imperial keep in Gralea tried to order Ardyn to the floor when tempers ran high, and his lack of interest in public displays of dominance led to whispers in the upper echelons of the military. Still, there was discretion, and then there was letting a member of the Niflheim elite make an utter fool of himself in front of all of Insomnia. By the time Loqi Tummelt was about to whip his glove off and challenge poor Cor the Immortal to a public duel, Ardyn's patience had worn thin enough that he snapped out the order without a care for nuance. Loqi fell to his knees with a thump that rattled the furniture.

So did half the subs in the room. 

Noctis, who'd been standing with Aranea Highwind near the drinks table, carefully backed himself into the wall. Ardyn paced around Loqi, who trembled in outrage, his face flushing pink in equal parts fury and pleasure, stopped so that he faced Loqi and Noct together, and snapped his fingers twice.

Noctis raised a glass to his lips.

"Look at me." Ardyn put strength into his voice, a touch of brute power that he usually abhorred, and Loqi met his gaze immediately. Noctis' eyes flicked upwards for an instant, then away, and Ardyn lay a hand on Loqi's hair. 

"Good boy," Ardyn said, and Noctis closed his eyes. "Now stay there until the Marshal sees fit to let you stand." He turned to Cor and bowed a fraction. "If you'll excuse me."

"For gods sakes," Cor said. "Stand up."

"Yes sir," Loqi said, and blinked hard. Noct shoved himself off the wall and stalked off, his cheeks flushed a faint pink, and as Ardyn left the room, Noct pushed past him, shoulder brushing against Ardyn's cape.

\---

The flogging posts in the Citadel were works of art, carved at the back and sides and lined for comfort, but when Ardyn came across them before a meeting with the Lucian council, there was only one man in the room, running a hand down the black leather.

"Your highness," Ardyn said, and Noctis flinched, pulling his hand away. "Having a moment of self-reflection, are we?"

"Chancellor." Noctis' eyes narrowed slightly, but his breath came short, and there was a pink tinge to his neck and ears. "I thought you were." He cleared his throat. "I was just."

"They _are_ lovely, aren't they?" Ardyn asked. He stepped into the room, watching Noct out of the corner of his eye, and lay a hand on the post. "And it comes with padded cuffs. How considerate. But you know, a good wall and an order to _stay still_ can be more than enough in the right circumstances."

Noct stared at him, lips parted, and Ardyn realized with growing delight that Noct was holding his breath. He leaned close, gazing down at him, and tilted his head to the post. 

"Can you recommend them?" he asked. "You must have indulged at least once."

Noct closed his mouth and stepped back, breathing hard through his nose. "No."

"You're a prince," Ardyn said. "Surely you can make the time."

Noct closed his eyes for a breath, then took another step back. "I should go." He hovered for a moment, and Ardyn's brows rose.

"You can't be waiting for _my_ permission?" he said, and Noct's face flushed darkly, his eyes gone cold.

"Don't know why I would," Noct said, and took off, his ears blazing, hands clenched into fists at his side.

\---

The fourth time they ran into one another, Ardyn didn't even need to speak. He was on his way to his suites, taking a side route through the servants corridors, when a young man in muted, form-fitting clothes went barreling into him. Ardyn took a step back as the man staggered to his hands and knees, cursing softly.

"Oh, gods damn," the man said, and Ardyn smiled, slow and wicked, as Noctis looked up at him. Noctis was wearing dark eyeliner and fingerless gloves, and his trousers hugged his legs, lifting the small swell of his ass. He knelt there a moment, just staring, before he wrenched himself to his feet and took off, slamming open a side door.

"Noct!" someone shouted from the hall outside. "What took you?"

"I got dressed as fast as I could, Prompto." Ardyn caught the slight hitch in Noct's voice and tucked it away for further consideration as the voices drifted down the hall, fading away into a distant murmur.

\---

"...don't know what else to do," Noctis was saying, as he knelt in the gazebo of the Citadel gardens, leaning against Lady Lunafreya's knees. She had a hand in his hair, another propping open a book, and jasmine blossoms from the latticed roof fell to her shoulders, dusting her sky-blue cloak. "I swear he's testing me."

"Plenty of people have," Luna said. Noctis sighed, and she tugged idly at his hair.

"Thank you," he said. "This isn't weird, is it? You'd tell me if it's weird."

Luna laughed. "If it's this or you getting on your knees for Ardyn Izunia? Do you really need to ask?" Noctis bit his lip, and Luna's eyes went wide. "Don't tell me you actually want it," she said. "Noctis, he may be teasing you, but he never takes subs. If you show interest, he may just lead you on, and then you'll be hurt, and I'll have to duel him for your honor--"

"That's an idea." Ardyn ducked behind a fountain as Noct sat up a little. "What if I called him on it? He'll have to give it up, then. Or you can fight him, which, honestly? I'd pay to see that go down."

Luna clicked her teeth, and Ardyn stepped out from behind the fountain, taking care to scuff his shoes on the gravel path. Noct jumped to his feet and hurriedly took a seat on the bench next to Luna.

"Your highnesses," Ardyn said. "Please. Don't get up on my account."

"We won't," Noctis said. "We're good here." He took out his phone, feigning disinterest, and Ardyn climbed up the steps to lean against the gazebo entrance.

"I'm sure you are," he said. Noctis bit the inside of his cheek, and Luna's brows lowered dangerously. "You have a spot of dust on your knees," Ardyn added helpfully. "Just there."

To his credit, Noctis didn't even look. He just kept staring at his phone, thumbs tapping the screen, while Luna glared daggers in Ardyn's direction. At last, Ardyn bowed again, smiling wide, and took a step back.

"I do believe I'm due to visit your library," he said, gazing at the jasmine overhead. "Such a nice, quiet place. Very secluded. Good for a few hours of private study, don't you think?"

"Yeah, go wild," Noct said, but as Ardyn turned to go, he couldn't help but overhear the whoosh of breath as Noct sighed, nor the click of his phone on the bench beside him. Ardyn grinned and kept walking, hands in his pockets, taking in the pleasant warmth of a marvelous afternoon.

\---

As expected, the door to Ardyn's suites opened with a slam sometime after dinner, revealing Prince Noctis still in his evening formal wear, his face a stormcloud.

"Why, your highness," Ardyn said, picking up his cup of tea by the desk. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I got your note," Noctis said. His eyes had a wild edge to them, and he watched Ardyn with the wary look of a rabbit among wolves. "At dinner, inviting me up. So let's get it out in the open, then."

Ardyn looked Noctis up and down, lingering on the gold lining on his jacket, the polished shoes, his stiff, uncomfortable collar. This was a man who, if rumor was true, was trained to resist by men and women with all the subtlety of a hammer. Ardyn set down his tea.

"I'm afraid you must be mistaken," Ardyn said. Noctis' face colored, heat rising to his cheeks. "I offered no invitation to the prince of Lucis."

"But the note," Noct said. Ardyn met his gaze with a lazy, uninterested air.

"You must have picked it up by accident, then," Ardyn said. "I didn't ask for you." He rose to his feet, towering over Noct, but he tilted his head back as though trying to avoid looking at him head-on. "The man I invited here would have been on his knees by now. I have no use for you."

Noct opened his mouth. Ardyn lay a thumb on his lower lip, pressing down, and for just a moment, Noct let him. Then his mouth snapped shut and he fell back, shoulders taut, sucking in a harsh breath.

"I have no use for this, either," Ardyn said, idly flicking back the lapels of Noct's jacket. Noct raised a hand, but Ardyn simply spun him around, holding him by the neck as he wrenched the jacket down. Noct stumbled, his cotton undershirt twisted askew, and turned to face him. He was breathing faster now, already half hard, and this time, when Ardyn snapped his fingers, he instantly looked his way.

"Do away with the prince," Ardyn ordered, and Noct let out a ragged sigh. "I want to see what you are underneath."

"You could have said _strip,"_ Noct said, but his hands were already fumbling for his shirt buttons.

"And a good sub would be on his knees," Ardyn said. "But here we are."

Slowly, with a deliberate effort that Ardyn wished he could immortalize in paint for future generations, Noctis lowered himself to the floor.

"Good boy," Ardyn said.

Noct stripped expertly, even with his shaking hands and flushed face, which made Ardyn wonder exactly who he'd done this for in the past. He certainly showed no reticence in showing off his body, his arms corded with lean muscle, legs toned, slight tan lines on his ankles and wrists. His posture was terrible, of course, but Ardyn could fix that. Ardyn placed his boot on Noct's shoulder and pushed him back a few inches. Noct's breath hitched.

Ardyn paced around him, adjusting the placement of Noct's hands, the tilt of his chin, the line of his back. When he was satisfied, Ardyn smiled and gripped Noct's hair, tugging at the roots. Noct's pupils were blown black, and his cock twitched in his lap.

"Very good," Ardyn said. "Now stay there."

Ardyn left him kneeling in the middle of the floor and pulled out his suitcase from the closet. "As much as I'd love to see you gagged," he said, as Noct's hands curled on his knees, "I'd rather you keep your voice this time around. How about silk, for your eyes? You seem the kind of man who would enjoy silk. Perhaps you may even deserve it. And... ah. You haven't been flogged yet?"

"Not..." Noct's voice was lower than before. "Nowhere it will show," he said.

"Of course. I wouldn't want to risk an incident. Hold this," he added, and strode to Noct, holding out the handle of his softest leather flogger, used to warm up what rare subs he let into his rooms. Noct raised his hands, and Ardyn shook his head. "Open," he said. Noct gave him an incredulous look and opened his mouth. Ardyn fitted the handle in his teeth, and stepped back to admire the view. The strips of the flogger swayed over Noct's chest, and his face was pink with humiliation, eyes fixed firmly on Ardyn. Ardyn ran his fingers through the strips and smiled.

"One moment," he said. He could feel Noct try not to twist around to watch him go. When he came back, Noct's nostrils flared at the sight of the silver clamps in Ardyn's hands, and his cock was fully hard, flushed and beading with precome.

"Do you want them?" Ardyn asked. Noct attempted a nod, and Ardyn rubbed Noct's nipples into peaks, twisting and tugging just to test his control. Noct was nearly trembling with effort by the time Ardyn was done, and when the first clamp was set, he nearly dropped the flogger with a low, aching groan.

"You're doing so well," Ardyn said. He fitted on the other clamp, and Noct ground his teeth into the handle of the flogger, eyes narrowed to slits. "You can let go now." The flogger dropped into Ardyn's palm, and Ardyn tugged lightly on the chain between the clamps, testing their give. Noct moaned and hunched forward, and Ardyn smiled wide.

"Oh, I do like this look on you," he said. "Get up. Hands on the wall."

It took some doing to get Noctis into position. He kept trying to spread his legs, which would be trouble if the flogger came too close to his inner thighs, but when Ardyn got him where he wanted him, Ardyn ordered him to stay and fetched the silk cloth to cover his eyes. It did the job of limiting Noct's vision to the barest sliver of light below his nose, giving him a view of the chain as it swung over his chest. 

"Count for me," Ardyn said, and when the flogger struck Noct's thighs, the sound he made was _divine_. "Was that a number?" 

"One," Noct whispered.

"Good." Ardyn swung the flogger again. His blows were purposely erratic, going from light and warm to sharp, delicious lines of pain that striped Noct's ass and thighs and made him twitch against the wall. 

Noct lost count twice. By the time Ardyn deemed it enough, Noct was struggling to hold himself up, and his ass was so thoroughly marked that Ardyn suspected a few of the lines would last through morning. 

"How was that, my dear?" Ardyn asked, when Noct had pressed his lips to the handle of the flogger and pushed back, shaking, to reveal a flush that spread to his neck and shoulders. 

"Yeah," Noct said. Ardyn untied the blindfold, and Noct blinked slowly, his eyes unfocused. "Can I ask if."

"Oh, you're precious," Ardyn said, and for a second, Noct's vision cleared, looking at Ardyn with the closest he could get to a disgruntled expression. "Yes, go ahead."

"Are we going to..." Noct fell forward clumsily, a hand hovering just above Ardyn's hip, not quite touching. He looked down, and Ardyn leaned in to kiss his jaw, eliciting a shudder. 

"If you want me to fuck you, all you need to do is ask."

"Yeah," Noct whispered. "Yeah. Please. That. Can we. Can we do that."

"Hands and knees on the bed," Ardyn said, and stood by to watch as Noct struggled to obey. His ass was too sore for it not to burn, but when Ardyn lay a hand on his thigh, Noct rocked back into his touch.

He was terribly tight, even when Ardyn had him humping back on his fingers, and at the first press of Ardyn's cock, Noct let out a low moan of pleasure and clawed at the sheets, tugging them loose. Who knew, Ardyn thought, as he pushed Noct forward on the bed, that the prince of Lucis had such a fondness for pain? Next time, he'd have to bring out the whip. Or the little round device that could slice across the skin without breaking it, making the sub feel like a knife blade was running along their body. Or the wax. Next time. 

"Fuck you," Noct gasped, and Ardyn pulled him back by the hair. "Fuck you, you shouldn't be so good at this, fuck, gods--"

Ordinarily, Ardyn would have stopped altogether at that, but he supposed Noctis could be forgiven this once. He rocked into him harder, digging into sore, reddened flesh, and lay a hand on his neck, holding Noctis fast to the bed. He wrapped his free arm around his waist to finish him off, making him howl into the mattress, and held Noct through his own release, gasping it out in his ear. 

Noct was, of course, disgustingly needy afterwards. He rolled languidly on the bed, acting every inch the spoiled prince Ardyn rather suspected he wasn't, and seemed content to cling to him, latching his legs around Ardyn's thigh.

"If you want someone to pet your hair and call you beloved, the Tenebraean suites are down the hall," Ardyn said, and Noct laughed.

"If you tell anyone, I'll probably have to kill you," Noct said. His voice was thick, and his eyes fluttered shut, hands gone slack on Ardyn's chest.

"Consider me duly warned," Ardyn said, but Noct was already gone, sinking into the sheets with an almost smug smile of pleasure. "I won't say a word."


End file.
